Tai Chi
is integration. It increases focus, reduces stress, improves body scheme and
balance, and helps facilitate creativity. It has its’ roots in the fighting
arts, and means “supreme ultimate fist”. The Yin Yang symbol is also called Tai
Chi.

It is
helpful to think of how Tai Chi movements have martial applications. However, with
“energy-focused” styles, the primary and
immediately practiced point is to feel energetic circulation move through the
entire body. This is real, attainable, and exciting. Intention, attention, and
deep relaxation allow the internal flow.

Keys to
Tai Chi

Intention
is key to success. You want it and it will come.

Your
mantra is attention to deeper physical sensations. You open and relax, and relax and open, progressing from the edge of sensation.

Deep
relaxation is the key to feeling flow, not the breath or even the artful movements. You’ll need to work on the ability
to breathe naturally, it is necessary, helpful and healthy, but not the focus.

Movement
and poses are vehicles only,
they help drive you to your center to release and spread health supporting
attention and energy

You may
feel chi awakening through the spine when you express your intention, intention
is receiving. You can practice to feel the movement flow to the feet, and to
your hands. Allowing and spreading.

Helpful
pre-req

For
greater success in expressing and feeling the flow of Chi during Tai Chi, you
should try to add balance to your life by ensuring that you spend time
appreciating your version of beauty in any sense of the word. You will be able
to add to your current supply of energy.

If you
can begin to experience some of this beauty without dissecting or even naming
it, you’ll receive a more natural feeling of contentment and legitimate energy
flow. Dissection compresses energy flow. As you gaze at works of art, a pet, listen to music that moves you, smell…, feel…, etc., learn to draw in
the radiance of contentment, joy, deep relaxation and even excitation and
imagine it sinking to a major power center, the Dantien (Center of
Gravity/lower abdominal area). You do not need to feel the flow to know that
beauty and connection is integrative and healing. Save it up, you’ll use it
soon enough.

During
Practice of Forms

Stage
One: Bring attention inside, express your intention, yes: to feel the flow! Try to sense any
vibration, tingling, or warm area as you scan the entire body. Can you help “create” it?

No?
Relax even more while practicing your form or movement. Take it for granted
that you will feel the flow, do not covet or strain. You know that would block
it. Continue to enjoy this process as long as needed. It is beneficial itself.

Yes? Stage
Two: Connect to the sensation, and while relaxing further, allow it to spread:
Focus pleasantly, relax deeply inside and out (don’t fall down!) on the leading
edge of the sensation. Let it prompt you. Open more near the sensation where
you can’t quite feel it spread, then it will.

A
couple more traditional landmarks

A. You
may feel Chi radiate in the middle back (Ling Tai). It is near T6/Point GV 10
on Governing Vessel Meridian., it’s a joyous feeling: Learn to cultivate and embrace a sense of awe.

B. Give
attention to the Niwan Palace (pineal gland, 6th Chakra, deep inside brain).
Learn to relax the head (inside and out). Give it relaxed attention and relax
even further.

C. Feel
the spread of sensation circling the torso in a mid-sagittal sphere (the
microcosmic orbit), learn to direct it to the feet, and hands. You may also
feel a mass expression of Chi flow throughout the entire body. That works, right?

You may
at some time feel the origin of the flow emanating from deep inside the brain
(the Niwan Palace), but do not wait to feel this as the source. Whether the
energy is ascending from the sacrum, spreading from the middle back, or
“starting” in the head or even hands, feel your “starting point”, and then work
with leading edge.

The ability to feel increased circulation of energy is
not just theoretical; it has been experienced by myself and many others. You learn
to focus, and relax and not get too preoccupied by your movement or form. This
goes for my fellow yoga practitioners also. Here the strain (stretch or
contraction) of many poses can block the flow, but those poses do prepare the
body for more successful Chi expression later.

Whether you feel a flow of sensation or not, the very act of relaxing and focusing and sensing has a profound positive effect on practitioners.

Tai Chi is also a very effective method for improving standing balance and functional leg strength, while strengthening the core and improving upper extremity range of motion and quality of movement.